Does anything say Winter is Over like strawberries? This fruit is a challenge and does not play nice with every beer style, as I have learned from personal experience. When Peter's eyes went round with delight upon being served this beer, I knew I had something going. The first thing you notice is the large, creamy head atop a beer that is the color of a red grapefruit. When you lift the glass, the nose is all strawberry fields. It's tasting bright right now, and the natural tartness of the fruit puts a smile on my face. I'll bring this one to my mother -- she's sure to like it. Is this beer a quick summer fling -- do I have to give my bottles away as quickly as possible before the flavor fades? Right now, it's an aroma bomb. By the way, you might notice my photos have graduated from rural outdoorsy shots to a studio feel -- a reflection of my move from the wilds of Vista, California to Los Angeles. Some say L.A. can be a bit wild too, but where are the coyotes?

A cache of strawberries makes my mouth water for a strawberry wheat beer, especially in the heat of late spring in Vista, California. I used strawberries to make another beer a few weeks ago: a peanut butter and jelly American brown ale which is now in bottle conditioning. Come on over in a couple of weeks and let's give them both a try.

Pink-Throated Brilliant American wheat ale at the boiling process.

Luscious strawberries procured from Gary Inouye at the Vista Farmers Market, Rodney Kawano Farms, will be added in secondary fermentation.

The sparging process: gently running heated water through the grain bed to extract sweet liquid wort.